IndyCar racer Ed Carpenter refused to leave the track following his crash at the Indianapolis 500 until he had spoken his mind to the rival he held responsible for his accident. Team owner Carpenter had entered himself in the American racing series’ showpiece event, but his race was over after just 27 of the 200 laps when he became the third driver to be eliminated.
The 100th Indy 500 had already claimed 2014 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay and Britain’s Katherine Legge, the latter unlucky to strike the wall after swerving to avoid the former, who had spun out on his own. At the restart, Carpenter found himself in the wall after becoming trapped in a pocket between several other cars on track.
Replays showed former F1 driver and two-time Indy 500 winner Takuma Sato, who was on the outside of Carpenter heading into the corner, appearing to drift down the slope and into the American racer’s line, causing him to spin and slam heavily into the wall. Thankfully he appeared uninjured, managing to clamber out of the stricken vehicle unaided.
Carpenter was visibly incensed, however, as after pulling off his helmet he opted not to immediately follow a safety marshal off the track. Instead, he held his ground until the field came back around the oval to pass him, giving him the opportunity to make his feelings about Sato’s driving abundantly clear.
Carpenter was spotted standing on the Brickyard circuit, biding his time until Sato drew near. When he clocked the Japanese driver’s Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing car, he gestured straight at him and could unmistakably be seen mouthing “f*** you” to the racer he held responsible for cutting short his Indy 500.
After being examined by medical staff and given the all-clear, Carpenter addressed journalists where he expressed his anger towards Sato plainly. He said: “I was in the middle of a gaggle of cars, following [Marcus] Armstrong into turn one on the outside, and Takuma tried to make it three-wide into turn one on the restart, which was unwise.
“Not only did he do that, he tried to squeeze me down like I was not going to be there, so that’s really disappointing, so early in the race. For a veteran like that, a two-time champion, I would expect way more out of him. Needless to say, I’m pretty disappointed that happened.”
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Unsurprisingly, the confrontation generated considerable response online. One fan, who shared a screenshot of Carpenter’s tirade, commented: “Ed Carpenter is a psycho. Gets in a wreck and then tries to square up a moving IndyCar!”
Another observed: “I don’t think we need a professional lip-reader for what Ed Carpenter said to Sato.” And a third quipped: “Ed Carpenter looks like a neighbourhood dad yelling at cars for going 27mph down the street when the speed limit sign clearly says 25.”
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